In a stillness
That isn’t silent.
In the silence
Which isn’t still.
Yet, still and silent are the waters,
Which soothe my Autumn Soul.
How does a silent reflection
Speak so deeply?
How can the still surface
Shift and change and move?
This is how the silence speaks.
How the stillness ripples.
Just for you, my Autumn Soul.
© Thela Foxgood 2019 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
When is the last time you let silence speak, and stillness move your soul?
by Beth Haley
Every day we encounter situations that we have the opportunity to respond to in a positive and calm way. On the other hand, we can live reactively, by going into anxiety, fear or stress. However, our happiness and health depend a great deal upon how well we can manage our emotional responses, reactions, mental perceptions and beliefs.
We all know that continuous emotional stress is hard on our bodies. So really, being able to regulate our emotions and develop self-coping/soothing practices may very well save our life. Developing the ability to walk through our everyday circumstances in a calm and clear-headed manner, can get us farther than fighting battles we don’t need to fight, or by running when we need to calmly stand.
Imagine that you are connected to the most sophisticated and sensitive machine (like a polygraph) ever made. It measures your feelings of stress, anxiety, or fear. If you feel even the slightest bit of these emotions while you are hooked up to this machine, it will deliver a shock which will end your life.
The thing is, if you make it through the test, you win a million dollars. So with this in mind (death or a substantial prize), imagine that you are hooked up to this machine and your test is about to begin. Your directions are as follows: Imagine a situation in your life that brought/brings you anxiety, fear, or stress. If you can stay completely calm and relaxed, you will win the prize. If not… ZING!
The next time you’re about to jump on the “Anxiety, Fear, and Stress Express,” remind yourself of the choice between the zing or the prize. It’s not just an interesting exercise. It is the training and retraining of our minds.
We don’t actually need the “fight or flight” response all that often. Maybe if you’re being chased by a bear? Were you chased by a bear today? Some of us are so used to living with stressed-out emotions, we don’t even know how to let ourselves be calm, at ease, grounded, centered and at peace. Let alone shut it all down to even rest.
The choice is ours. Will we have an internal forecast of calm today ? Or, “fight or flight?”
My choice today is to win the cash prize of self-possessed calm, and avoid the zing of the machine.
What does stress solve? Zing! What does anxiety fix? Zing! What does fear prevent? Zing!
Breathe! The chances are really, really good that you are not currently being chased by a bear – and that whatever you are facing, will be easiest to handle with a calm and clear mind.
Sources: The Mindfulness & Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety -Forsyth and Eifert
Photos by Faye Cornish and Harli Martin
New skills take practice and commitment. In time, our practice becomes routine, and the chain-reaction of negative thinking is replaced by the learned habit of catching emotional reactions and dropping the story lines.
Healing 💓 thoughts, PS
by Beth Haley
Good exercise and practice, combined with play, is good for the soul. My children just can’t seem to be serious for too long – which is fun for those of us caught off guard! They remind me of the youthful healthiness of movement and laughter. With this in mind, I got a hula hoop the other day. So far, the most exercise I’ve gotten from this new motion plan has been in patience.
In what ways can you incorporate “play” into your health and exercise practice?
“A friend is what the heart needs all the time.”
-Henry Van Dyke
😊😊😊
“A salad is not just a meal. It’s a style.”
-Lebowitz
Header Photo by Shlag
Footer Photo by Anna Pelzer
Sea Cucumber Photo by Pilgrimage Studio @ The Monterey Bay Aquarium – Monterey, CA
Got Style? 😊 💃
by Beth Haley
Garlic is one of the oldest plants used as medicine. “When the British came to India, leprosy became known as “peelgarlic,” because of the frequent sight of lepers peeling and eating garlic cloves.”
–The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Healing Remedies by C. Norman Shealy MD, PhD
Garlic increases pitta, or fire, and it helps with digestion by increasing digestive juices. It has both a cooling and heating effect on the body. When the fire element is too inflamed in our bodies (agitation, stubbornness) it can help bring balance. On the other hand, if our fire is too low, garlic can get the fire burning again.
Fire Temperament
Fire element plants are not just for the physical body. Destructive forces such as anger can be regulated as well by the principle of “fighting fire with fire.”
“…to put out forest blazes by deliberately setting the undergrowth aflame, can release rage in a dramatic and explosive outburst. Once this willful anger is gone, the sorrow hiding beneath it can be expressed, bringing the system back into balance.”
–Plant Spirit Wisdom by Ross Haven
Some uses of garlic:
Cancers
Colds
Skin disorders
Parasites
Joint issues
Arthritis
Cysts
Fluid retention
Antibiotic
Reduces blood pressure
Reduces cholesterol
Stimulant
Carminative
Expectorant
Disinfectant
It is rejuvenating for the nervous, digestive, respiratory, reproductive and circulatory systems
All this written, if one were to eat the amount of garlic recommended (6-12 cloves a day) to produce these results, I don’t suppose we would smell that great. However, garlic does come in capsules which are odor-free.
–The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Healing Remedies by C. Norman Shealy MD, PhD
Photos by Team Voya & Mike Kenneally
Working in meditation today, I was reminded that sometimes healing is uncomfortable. When we are in the midst of the process of healing, we may feel disempowered. Rather than feeling powerful, we only feel and see the wounds. However, this is the process – and to step into healing, we must first spend time tending the wounds.
I don’t normally refer to religious texts. However, two passages (3 actually) came up during this session.
The Fisher King is also associated with The Wounded King, The Hanged Man and The King of Cups.
That the Fisher King (from The Grail Legend) has taken to fishing while he is waiting for help and healing seems symbolic. Fishing is an activity that requires not only patience, but is dependent upon the right fish, at the right time, taking the bait… or in other words, the right element, person, or tool for the healing he seeks.
I suppose that the Fisher King is associated with the “Fisher of Men” because both of these stories were about seeking what was lost. One King was seeking healing for his body, soul, and kingdom. The other King, “The Fisher of Men,” was seeking those that were lost, to save, and bring into his kingdom.
A Dark Night of the Soul?
Before healing – is the process.
Before power, is weakness.
Healing can come in unexpected ways.
I love working with Bibliomancy. I take a book (any book I feel drawn to), pose a question, and then read the first thing I see.
Today’s meditation session felt like a “Lord of the Rings” moment where the dialog goes, “…but something happened then the Ring did not intend.”
Now, I am not a religious person (spiritual, yes), so what happened next, I did not expect. The first thing I saw as I opened the book after working with the messages of The Fisher King, was:
3. Seek and you will find.
What are you seeking today?
Kingfisher Photo by Boris Smokrovic
The route you take depends a good deal upon where you want to go. -Lewis Carroll
Day after day, the father drove to work along the same dreary highway to the same dreary job. Sometimes his daughter went to his office with him. On one of these occasions she noticed a winding road running parallel to the highway. “Oh, Daddy, let’s take that road today,” she suggested. After some grumbling and mumbling, the father agreed and turned off to take the side road.
To their delight, the road was lined with full trees and a rainbow of flowers. They came upon a quaint little village in which there was an office with a sign in the window that said, “Clerk Wanted. Inquire Within.” The job seemed perfect and the man accepted it with excitement he hadn’t felt in many years.
Sometimes we have to risk taking a different path in order to arrive at a different place. How else can we change things in our lives that need to be changed? And how easy to do it, once we’re willing to risk something out of the ordinary.
What can I do that’s out of the ordinary today?
From: Today’s Gift – Daily Meditations for Families
The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, but must be felt with the heart.
-Helen Keller
Pilgrimage Studio 